Valor features the thrilling stories that are the fruit of Mark Lee Greenblatt’s interviews with brave American servicemen from twenty-first-century wars. These soldiers, sailors, and Marines have risked their lives several times over for their country as well as for their fellow troops and civilians. Still, until now, their stories have largely gone unnoticed by the public, perhaps lost in the frenzied and often nasty debate surrounding those conflicts. As the author writes, “This generation does not have an Audie Murphy. I set out to change that with this book.”
Detailing incredible and evocative feats—including an Army pilot who rescued two fellow pilots from a deadly crash in hostile territory and strapped himself to the helicopter’s exterior for the flight to the hospital—Greenblatt provides glimpses into the minds of these men as they face gut-wrenching decisions and overcome enormous odds.
However, this book is much more than tales of riveting action. Each chapter goes beyond linear combat stories to explore each hero’s motivations, dreams, and the genuine emotions that were evoked in the face of extreme danger. Readers will be transported to a variety of settings—from close-quarters urban fighting in Iraq to mountainside ambushes in rural Afghanistan to a midnight rescue in the middle of the Atlantic—as they accompany the men who do not see themselves as heroes but as patriots in the line of duty.
Mark Lee Greenblatt is an attorney based in the Washington, DC, area specializing in criminal and ethics investigations. Mark is involved in several community service activities, including serving as vice president of the Marian Greenblatt Education Fund, a foundation created in honor of his mother to honor excellence in education. He received his undergraduate degree from Duke University and his law degree from Columbia University. He was also a Senior Managers in Government Fellow at the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University. Mark has earned a black belt in tae kwon do and was the drummer in The Fiasco, widely considered the greatest rock-’n’-roll band since The Beatles. He lives with his wife and two sons in Bethesda, Maryland. To learn more about Mark and the heroes profiled in this book, visit www.markleegreenblatt.com.
Table of Contents
Preface ix
Acknowledgments xiii
Introduction xvii
"It Was the Loneliest Moment of My Life" Chris Choay 1
A Sons Promise James Hassell 19
The Cerebral Warrior and the Friendly American Michael Waltz 45
"The Worst Soldier in the History of the Army" Steve Sanford 75
Eternal Love of the Brotherhood Buck Doyle 101
The Overworked Guardian Angel Chris Kyle 119
"My Buddies' Keeper" Ryan Welch 139
Midnight Rescue in the Middle of the Ocean Kyle Need 159
